BUFFALO, N.Y. — In a new move, the New York State Office of Cannabis Management has added an online tool for businesses looking to open a licensed adult-use cannabis shop.
"The map is more set up for other people who are trying to get into the business, to understand where they can place locations because you can't have a location within 1,000 feet of another location "
The digital map lays out already existing cannabis dispensaries - marked with green dots, and those that are still under review - shown in yellow.
Aaron Van Camp is the owner of Dank, a cannabis shop in Downtown Buffalo. Van Camp says that for current retailers, the new map is just a new heads up on future competition in a market that is rapidly expanding.
"As a retailer, it's something that's very scary. We went from having two stores here to having 17. We've seen a small dip from people going other places. We've maintained the amount of customers but the basket size has dropped quite a bit," said Van Camp.
Andrea Moore at Herbal IQ remembers a time when there just two cannabis shops in business here in Buffalo.
"I've literally been here since the beginning when it was just us and Dank so to see all of these stores opening up is incredible," said Moore.
The cannabis board noted that the new map is supposed to make the licensee application process easier and more transparent. A process that Andrea says can be quite long and difficult for those just starting out.
"It was definitely a struggle in the beginning just getting the licensing to begin with. They had to jump through a lot of hoops," said Moore.